The company believed responsible for the massive sinkhole near Bayou Corne may have to pay a fine of up to $5,000 a day if it doesn't retroactively compensate evacuated residents.

Louisiana Commissioner of Conservation James Welsh said Thursday Texas Brine Co. is required by the permit issued for a brine cavern they own in the Napoleonville salt dome to provide assistance to residents if a sinkhole develops.

The Houston-based company began providing a weekly housing check of $875 to evacuated locals last week.

Officials at the Assumption Parish Police Jury said Tuesday a small bubble site was discovered near a massive sinkhole in Assumption Parish. Residents have been reporting other gas bubbles and tremors in the area for months.

The sinkhole swallowed up an acre of bald cypress trees Aug 3. It has since grown to the size of a football field.

Officials at a Houston-based brine company told residents of a rural Louisiana town that it will be at least 40 days before they get definitive answers about an enormous sinkhole that opened up in Assumption Parish.

Mark Cartwright, president of Texas Brine Co., said Friday the company spent the last week "intensely focused" on an emergency response as they try to figure out the cause behind a sinkhole near Bayou Corne.